To Wivenhoe Town Cricket Club! …on Sunday afternoon we’re kind of getting into this summer Sunday cricket routine. It’s a shame the season is about to come to a close; When an Old Batsman Leaves the Crease, etc.
Part of the routine is to look an absolute dickhead, walking the mean streets of CO7, carrying the contents of the weekly veg waste. The Rectory Road cricket ground is pretty much next door to the allotment. Two birds, one stone, etc.
The food waste bin looks more like a cricket hamper. At least it gives us some cover and camouflage for any disconcerting looks. Not that anyone at Wivenhoe Town Cricket Club gives a shit, to be honest. They’re an incredibly friendly bunch.
The fixture list has been updated online, pretty much to precision over the summer months - except for the final couple of weeks. We’ve no idea if any cricket would be taking place and, if it was, who was playing.
We rocked up at Rectory Road around 3 pm on Sunday and were pleased to see the umpires and players out in the middle. A few conversations later and we clocked on that this was true pub cricket: a Wivenhoe Town team (I’m not exactly sure which team) were playing a team from the New Inn, over in Sunny Colch.
I’ll drink to that. Chin chin.
We took our position at the pavilion end of the ground. It was a little strange viewing, with the middle positioned very much over to the Rectory Road side. New Inn were batting. They were on 115 for 5 in - I think - the 30th over when we arrived.
That can’t be right as I think it was only a 30-over match. Scoreboards are overrated anyway.
Wivenhoe looked keen to wrap things up with the away team innings. There were endless appeals. There was also a rather pleasant warm wind blowing across the old ground.
I missed a few more wickets. I was messing around taking photos, natch.
I then rotated 90° and there it was, right in my face: some fella with his trousers pulled down, showing off his jock strap and a rather large cricket box bedded away inside.
POW, right in the kisser, etc.
Runs were clearly needed by New Inn. Some not-so-friendly advice came from the away team players sitting back in the hutch.
“Get a bloody move on. It’s not a Test match.”
There, that’s told them.
Play was interrupted slightly as a motorbike was carefully ridden behind the wicket on route to the car park.
An unfortunate drop then took place by one of the Wivenhoe players at square leg. It looked to have been easier to have caught it - so says the dude whose own proud cricket career scorecard reads: no runs, not out.
Wivenhoe had some pretty lethal pace bowlers. One fella in particular was able to deliver a ball at speed, which then died and kept low throughout. He clean bowled the tail end of the new innings.
A run chase of 191 was set from 30 overs. I’m still not actually sure if I trust the scoreboard or not.
The tea interval came and went. Some pretty spectacular Sunday afternoon spreads were laid out in the pavilion.
TUCK IN.
The Wivenhoe openers wasted no time. Fifty was soon up on the scoreboard after only 5 overs.
What I’m finding fascinating watching village cricket at this level is the variety of different bowling actions on show. You don’t get too much change in styles when watching County cricket. Step down 10 rungs or so in the cricket pyramid and blimey, you see some pretty odd bowling actions.
More runs were made, more wickets were taken. This looked like it could be something of a tense close to the afternoon. Sadly - and possibly for one final time - bloody work got in the way of me seeing the end of the game.
I’ve no idea who won, but that’s not really the point, is it?
